No really, I am…..

Sparkle Cupcakery, Take 2

Now, I don’t want to provide more fuel to the fire of the great Sparkle Cupcakes debate, but as promised I did return to sample more to see if the cupcakes were as disappointing as my first visit.

I turned up on a whim at about 4pm on a Sunday afternoon, when there was a sudden influx of people. Disappointingly most cupcakes were gone. We selected the coconut ice and the espresso.

The were popped into their chic little bag, and quickly carried home. One qualification: I had also stopped at St Honore Bakery in Chinatown a little earlier. But these were tried first.

So far, so good. On cutting, there wasn’t the dry crumble of the last cakes I tried. The Espresso was much firmer than the coconut ice, and pleasingly flecked. My hopes of improved flavour though were quickly dashed. The coconut ice was plain cake. The only coconut flavour came from the shredded coconut sprinkled over the frosting, which was sweet, but again had no flavour? Are the frostings supposed to have flavour? Or have I simply been spoilt by Cupakes on Pitt and The Cupcake Bakery and Babycakes by Renee? However, as opposed to my last visit the cake wasn’t dry at all, and in fact, light and fluffy. A vast improvement!

Next up was the espresso. I had high hopes for this as I love coffee flavoured cakes! But again, disappointment came all too soon. I had hoped that the dark flecks would be crushed coffee beans? Maybe they were, but it had no flavour. 🙁

The flavour this time did come from the frosting, though was very subtle. The texture of the espresso, as earlier mentioned was much firmer, and not dry.

Again, another disappointing visit. I’m really saddened by this, as it’s such a great concept. My boyfriend also wasn’t too impressed, and declared “I wouldn’t pay $4.50 for one of them again” Maybe our standards have been set too high by the others in the market? I hope that my feedback, and that of other foodbloggers I’ve come across is taken in the spirit that it is intended, to provide constructive criticism to improve their product.

One other thing: Is Sparkle going to put any content on their website? I’ve been waiting for them to provide a list of flavours, ordering info etc….nothing…Maybe soon?